


The Prince Who Loved The Stars

by Kurtines



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, Angst, Ballroom Dancing, Dancing under the moon, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Fluff, Forbidden Love, Gloves, Heavy Angst, I Will Go Down With This Ship, M/M, Might write some side stories later, Minor Character Death, No Smut, Not Beta Read, Oblivious, Prince Tsukishima Kei, Running Away, Secret Relationship, Sharing a Bed, Slow Build, Slow Burn, So many side stories Jesus fuck, Tsukishima Kei Being an Asshole, very slow build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-25
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:27:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24908362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kurtines/pseuds/Kurtines
Summary: After Prince Kei fires almost half of their palace staff, the Queen is forced to replace nearly hundreds of them in time for Prince Akiteru's wedding preparations.Yamaguchi saw the opportunity to be able to work at under the royal family's roof, and earn enough money to cure his dying mother.But he finds himself at the mercy of the cold hearted Prince Kei, and slowly manages to open the door to Kei's heart.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru, Kuroo Tetsurou & Tsukishima Kei, Nishinoya Yuu & Tanaka Ryuunosuke, Oikawa Tooru & Yamaguchi Tadashi, Tanaka Saeko/Tsukishima Akiteru, Tsukishima Akiteru/Original Female Character(s), Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 15
Kudos: 97





	1. Search

_Yamaguchi was finally given a chance— an opportunity to save his family from the nightmare that is their reality. He could see it, the way to a better life, his one chance to victory._

  


_Their life would be better, all he needed to do is pass that test._

  


* * *

  


Rumors spread like wildfire in the poverty of the kingdom. He could hear it; he could hear the echo of their shushed whispers. The townsfolks gathered around the piece of yellow crumpled paper posted at the wall. The royal family was about to host their search yet again. _“My, how long has it been since the last one?” “It's been forever” “What could be the special occasion?”_

  


  


The royal search was a such rare event in the kingdom of Velaris. The time where the royal family of the Tsukishima's find skilled talented people to work under their roof. A chance for the poor to live in the comfort of the palace. Sometimes, in a desperate attempt, parents will train their child nonstop, forcing them to master a certain skill, just for them to live in a better life. 

  


  


Only a few people are chosen, only a few families are blessed. And Yamaguchi strives to be one of them.

  


  


Yamaguchi's noble family owns a bakery in South side of the Velaris kingdom, quite the popular place that was. But it wasn't enough to support their family, not when his mother was in need of immediate medical attention. Medicine was expensive there. Being a part of the royal staff would be big help, and since his family owns one of the most popular bakery in the kingdom, his skils in cooking and baking are high. So he definitely has a chance of being chosen.

  


  


Tadashi sat in front of their bakery, silently watching the people passing by as he had nothing better to do. He sighed. He could hear the laughter and chatter of the people nearby, followed by the _‘clank’_ s and ‘ _bang_ ’s of the tableware people used to eat with. His sister was now in charge of selling their baked goods at the bakery for a few hours, before it was his turn. It was a unspoken schedule that they'd telepathically agreed on. “Nii-chan, I'm bored” she whined, banging her head into the wooden planks of the front window. “I know, me too” 

  


  


“Yamaguchi!” a voice, loud and booming, yelled at him from across the street. “Nishinoya-senpai, it's been a long time since we've seen each other” Yamaguchi stood up from the small wooden bench he sat on and went to greet his old friend. Noya crushed him in a giant hug, as to make up for all of the hugs he could have given when he was gone. 

  


The Nishinoya's were a family of blacksmiths. Their name was well known in the kingdom. They liked to explore other kingdoms and cities rather than stay inside of their own. They were adventurous and energetic. Yuu was another top choice in this year's search. Although, Tadashi doesn't know if he's participating or not. 

  


  


“So, the search is in five days right?” Nishinoya asked “You going?”. They sat back down at the bench to chat, catch up on all the things they've might have missed. “Yeah, I think I might” Tadashi rubbed the nape of his neck “Although I'm quite nervous” he let out a bitter, dry laugh. 

  


  


“What? Why should you be? ” Nishinoya asked. He swayed his feet forward and back. And he looked at him with curiosity and worry. It was obvious that he had a lot of belief in his friend. 

  


  


“I don't know” Tadashi avoided his gaze “there's just so much talented bakers out there. I might not get chosen” Yamaguchi frowned “I mean—I have a chance, but still... ”

  


  


“Hey, don't go sulking on me now!” he yelled, he smacked his back with huge force “Come, let your upperclassmen treat you to a snack” he stood up, straightened his gray tunic, getting all of puffs of dirt out, and bought him a small loaf of wheat bread. 

  


  


“When did you come back, Nishinoya-san?” his sister asked, Tadashi knew that she liked Noya, (Not in any romantic way) as they were both the same; loud, joyous and energetic, almost the complete opposite to Tadashi's calm personality. 

  


  


“We came back yesterday” he answered “The crow kingdom was awesome!” he yelled, gaining the attention of the villagers around him. 

  


  


He proceeded to tell the story of how he met this orange haired kid, and how they became closed friends. He was pacing around, making dramatic hand gestures and acting out certain parts of his story. Both him and his sister watching and listening with great interests. 

  


  


Nishinoya and Tadashi stayed together for the whole day; talking about nothing and listening to the horses who galloped around the town with their riders. Noya was loud most of the time and Yamaguchi liked that in times like these, he didn't feel the need to talk and just enjoyed each other's presence.

  


  


“Yamaguchi! See you tomorrow!” 

  


  


He smiled, waving back at Noya with the same amount of energy. He helped his sister close up the shop. The night was becoming dark and gloomy, and children would run frantically around trying to arrive home before their families get mad. _The night wasnt safe for children. The night wasn't safe for anyone._

  


  


“Dashi, how long are you gonna leave us?” his sister asked

  


  


“Don't worry I won't be for long” he smiled at her. His sister was a lot younger than him, and he was tasked to be her guard—to protect her. 

  


  


The life that Tadashi's family is in was rough. But not nearly as horrible as the others around them. Their family of four lived in a small wooden cottage near their mother's farm and had a medium sized bake shop in the middle of the city. They were famous for selling their delicious food at affordable prices. 

  


  


Their father was the one who owned their bakeshop, but unfortunately he had stayed at home in the farm, in replace of their sickly mother. He had to take of her, while gathering food for his family. And that left Tadashi and his sister the job at their bakery. 

  


  


“But-” she yelled “I'll be lonely without you”

  


  


Tadashi could only stay silent for a while— he didn't want to leave, he wanted to stay with his family, but this was the only way to save his mother. “I'm sorry” he gave a bittersweet smile to her. He leaned closer to give her a small side hug. “I'll be back soon though, it's not like you'll never see me again”

  


  


“Now come on, let's go home”

  


* * *

  


  


The workers stood still as they listened to the royal family arguing. The servants didn't know if they should serve them their plates or wait until the dilemma was over. The air in the room was so thick you could cut it with a butter knife. _“Kei, must you always act like this?”_ her majesty, the queen, yelled. She pinched the bridge of her nose. Her bracelets dangled from her wrist. Sitting by her side, the first prince tried to calm the situation down. “Your majesty, Kei is still a child” Akiteru whispered. “Even so, this is unacceptable! You musn't fire people as you please”

  


  


“Our maids and butlers has decreased drastically this month” she said in hushed but calm and stern way. She sat further into her chair, her back was straight and her chin still sat high “We had to prepare another search” she sighed “Kei, do you know how troublesome it is to hire people into the castle?”

  


“They were annoying” Kei tried to defend himself in a quiet shushed tone, playing with his fingers beneath the table “Always flirting with me, and getting too close into my personal space...” some maidens in the room visibly flinched, they knew that deep down he was talking about them “I hate it”

  


  


“Kei... ” Akiteru started

  


  


_“ **The food** ”_ the queen suddenly yelled, startling everyone in the room. She cleared her throat and raised her hand as an order “The food— bring in the food”

  


  


“Let us talk about this later” the Queen announced. 

  


  


Immediately, the servants started to move. They gave their ( _now slightly cold_ ) dinner to the royal family. The luxury of being able to eat such delicious food is something that Kei takes for granted. He stared at his bowl of morthew, taking in its delicious smell, stared at the beautiful tableware, and started to eat. He looked at Akiteru happily eating his pottage and stared at the golden ring on his finger. He was becoming king soon, in a few months he will marry the first princess of the Arceña Kingdom. After that Kei will soon take the throne. That meant he had to find a _wife_. 

  


  


The thought made his stomach turn, he shouldn't think about this at the table. He shoved a spoonful of his morthew in his mouth. He never found the appeal of being married to a woman. He truly never did. To him, they were all the same, all boil-brained bastards with big breast and a slim waist. All the same. 

  


  


“Is father still not back?” Kei asked. 

  


  


“He should be back soon, Kei. The Seijoh empire is far from here” his mother said. “He should be back in time for the wedding.” She twirled her fork around her cream pasta, “When is Haruhi visiting, Akiteru?”

  


  


Kei sighed as the boring dinner went about and grabbed his strawberry cake. His favorite dessert. Their voices became muffled in Kei's mind as he stared at the beautiful cake with joy. Dripping with fluffy whipped cream and decorated with bright red strawberries. Just the right amount of balance for him to enjoy. He doesn't quite remember when this obsession started, and frankly— he doesn't care. 

  


  


After the dinner was over, he was escorted to his room by his personal guard. He's been by his side for almost two years now, which is long time compared to how long the past guards had stayed. Kei appreciated this one, for the sole reason that he was quiet. He passed by an towering open window and a breeze of cold air hit his face. He stopped on his feet to look outside, moving closer to the window and pressing a hand to lean against the wooden frame around the glass. The moom was dark, but the stars gave the night life. 

  


  


He stared at the shining stars that surrounds the moon, with pretty colors and sizes. He'd always wanted to see a star up close. A ridiculous and idiotic dream, but, he wanted it nonetheless. 

  


  


“Sir, we must be going” the tall man said. He stood behind him and pleaded him to go. Thousands of horrible accidents that may happen to the second prince raced his mind. If the prince dies, he will be the one to blame. 

  


  


“Ah yes, let's go” Kei said.

  


  


His mind remembered that his tutor, Ennoshita, would be with him for tommorow. He had to study even harder for his upcoming test. He frowned as he remembered that loud orange haired _freak_ was coming with him, the prince of the crow kingdom, Hinata Shouyou. Luckily for Kei, Ennoshita let's him do what he wished as long as he finished his work. So he could run off and eat as much cakes as possible, if he could. 

  


  


After that he had to practice sword fighting with his upperclassmen, Tanaka. Having such an aggressive and lewdster as a teacher in an act with swords was a recipe for hell. He was loud and annoying, although, in times of seriousness he was very respectable. One thing that made practice so much more amusing to him, was their common interests in mocking others — although his insults were close to none compared to Kei's. 

  


  


And after that, he had baking lessons ( _that his family has so graciously agreed on letting him attend_ ) with Akaashi Keiji; the most well-known and respected cook in the world and the personal chef for Prince Bokuto Koutaro. He'd always wanted to learn how to bake for himself, so that he'd never had to talk with the bakers for his very specific order and having them deliver it in his room. 

  


  


That about marks his schedule of task for tomorrow, one of the most relaxed days he'd had in a while. 

  


  


“Sir, were here”

  


  


“Mmm, you may leave now” Kei opened the door to his bedroom with a small metal key that he'd keep with him at all times. He was tired and in need of rest. 

  


  


“Sir, before you go, Sir Akaashi had a message for you”

  


  


He paused, “Go on” 

  


  


“He'd asked for you to help him with the upcoming search”

  


  


“Help him? With what?”

  


  


“He asked for you to be a judge with the pastries”

  


  


Kei stayed quiet, it was such a strange request from Akaashi, _isn't that also quite dangerous? “_ I'll think about it”

  


  


* * *

  


  


Tadashi didn't realize how quick those five days will come past. It all became a blur of events that he can't pick apart. It was already time for the search and the townsfolks are panicking. The parents were hurriedly trying to prepare their children mentally. But from the looks of their faces, including his own, they were not ready. 

  


  


Attendants must wait for the royal guards to arrive at the town square to pick them up. Tadashi and his sister was already there since their bakery was nearby. They were trying to spend as much time together as possible since neither of them knew when they were going to see each other again. 

  


  


“Dashi, what are you going to be doing at the palace?” she asked, her voice was quiet and soft, she hadn't had a proper rest these few days. She was leaning on his shoulder, she wanted nothing more than to sleep. “Are you going to be baking cakes for the Queen?”

  


  


He gave out a short dry chuckle “I don't think I'll serve for the Queen” he pressed her head further in into his shoulder “But I think I'll be cooking for one of the princes. But I'm not sure”

  


  


“Mmmm... ” she yawned. 

  


  


“Are you tired?” he asked. She nodded her head with the energy she had left. “You think you can get home alone?”

  


  


“Yeah” she nodded, she stretched out her arms and legs before standing up and walking away with a tiny wave. 

  


  


Yamaguchi sighed, feeling bad about leaving his sister behind. More and more people had been arriving, which means time was running out. He felt nervous so he looked around the small group of people for familiar faces.

  


  


“Nishinoya senpai, I didn't know you'd be coming to the search” he walked over to the small spiky haired fellow. He was brushing off some dust left on his left arm. 

  


  


“Yep, but here I am” he chuckled “I actually decided last minute that I wanted to go”

  


  


_‘That seems like something he would definitely do’_

  


  


“What are you applying for?” Tadashi asked. He stretched his arms behind his back and slightly moving his hips in a small dance. Quite honestly he didn't know why he asked that question since he already knew the answer to it, but maybe it was just so the situation didn't become so awkward. 

  


  


“Duh? What do you think?” he gave him a look, that Tadashi couldn't describe. A smirk mixed in with a soft smile. “It's the thing I'm the best at”

  


  


“God, I wish I wasn't nervous like you” Tadashi mumbled, he shifted on his feet and looked around to distract him from the back of his mind telling him how important this is to their family. And that possibly, the health of his mother was on the line. 

  


  


“Hey, I know that look” Noya pointed at his face “Thats the look on your face whenever your nerves get the best of you”

  


  


“Don't be scared Tadashi! Have some confidence in yourself” he held his hand up “I will not hesitate to slap your frown off your face” 

  


  


Yamaguchi chuckled at his friend's antics. “Yeah, yeah” he was so thankful for having such a good friends like him “Thank you, Nishinoya-san”

  


  


“Wha— don't say it so sincerely, you bastard”

  


The faint sound of the royal horses galloping towards their directions was a dead giveaway that they were near. Yamaguchi felt his heartbeat quickened. No matter what, he would never be able to prepare himself properly before an event like this. “My lord, I am not ready” Tadashi murmured to himself with a small laugh. Ah, he already felt like digging his own grave and burying himself dead. Not only is he an absolute mess when it comes to these things, apparently Akaashi Keiji was part of the search. **_The_** Akaashi Keiji was going to be talking to him later. _His damn idol._

  


  


The actual process for the search was long and tiresome. There were two parts: the interview, and the test. And each differ depending on what your intended job requires. For a cook like Tadashi, in the test, he had to create a dish and a dessert, and have it judged by professionals, and in rare cases— the royal family themselves. 

  


  


_What a nightmare that will be._

  


  


He had to get separated from Nishiyona and was to be walked inside the castle grounds with 9 other applicants. The walk is not as horrible compared if they were miles away from the castle, so he knew he shouldn't be complaining, but it was still so long and dreadful—he absolutely despised every minute of it. He looked at the guards as they rode their majestic horses as they walked through the woods, he resisted the urge to jump on the back of one of the horses and ride there until they'd arrive at the castle, he'd probably be arrested on the spot. 

  


  


He saw the giant Tsukishima castle in the distance, in almost the top of a mountain. They were almost there. It was said that the castle was built at the very top, so the royal family could talk to the moon. It was supposedly the thing that is the foundation of their kingdoms name. Tadashi shook his head at the ridiculous legend and focused on the fact that they had to journey up the mountain. His body was already begging for rest. 

  


  


Once they arrived at the bottom of the mountain, they were ordered to sit down as they waited for a carriage to pick them up. Three of the men in horses ran up the mountain to fetch the ride, while two others stayed back to watch over them. He silently sighed in relief as he found a nice flat surface for him to rest on, and also appreciated the fact they wouldn't have to climb up the ridiculously high mountainp. 

  


  


Tadashi looked silently at the other people around him. People who can take his spot at the palace. People that had just as much as a chance as he does. Even though they were only ten people, including himself, he had a lot of competition. But he doesn't his anxiety let that lower down his mood, just like Nishinoya said earlier— “I should have more confidence in my ability” he whispered to himself. He felt his stomach grumble, it was already noon and they've been walking for hours with no rest or breaks. He silently whined and hunched forward, resting his forehead on his knees. 

  


  


He felt a hand slowly shake his shoulders, he looked up and it was one of the other bakers he would be competing against. “Wake up, it's time to go”

  


  


It was a huge mistake taking a small nap now. He felt more tired than before. 

  


  


They were lead to the small carriage that barely fits the ten of them. It such a small and cramped space that none of them could even relax. The bright side, however: Tadashi was ordered to sit near the window. He looked outside for a bit, he saw the other guards riding their horses and following them along. 

  


  


He focused his attention on the nine other people he was with. He tried to see and look for any famous faces, he found one, the son of their rival bakery: _Oikawa Tooru._ He noticed Tadashi staring at him so he gave him a small encouraging smile, he knew why Yamaguchi was here, and he didnt want to damage his confidence in any way. 

  


  


The ride was filled with awkward silence, with the noise of the galloping horses and the wheels of the carriage in the background. 

  


  


“Hey, is it true?” one of them asked, almost in a hushed whisper as if they're scared someone will hear them. 

  


  


“What is?” someone whispered back 

  


  


“You know— that two of us will be the personal cooks of the two prince?” they asked, hands gesturing to the entire group

  


  


Tadashi, and everyone else, tensed up. _‘I though we just going to be regular cooks?’_ the ride was filled with silence yet again. 

  


  


Oikawa laughed, albeit quite loudly “Do actually think the Tsukishima's are going to let us, mere ‘ _peasants_ ’, to do that? ” he emphasized the word peasants in an obnoxious tone, he scoffed “as if”

  


  


“I guess... ” a girl with long brown haired said “but imagine working with prince Kei” she chuckled “What a nightmare”

  


  


Yamaguchi raised a confused eyebrow “Why would working with prince Kei a nightmare? Surely it can't be that bad” Tadashi asked. 

  


  


“Oh, you don't know? He was the reason that this search even started” 

  


  


“What... What do you mean by that exactly?” He asked again

  


  


The girl scoffed “I heard that 'cause of him, the palace lost half of its staff within a month” she explained “He was firing people left and right”

  


  


“They needed to host another search for the Prince Akiteru's coronation” another person added “talk about bad timing”

  


  


He's heard about stories of the magnificent Prince Akiteru and the brilliant Prince Kei. Who were both very admirable in their own way. Kei was usually described as ‘ _cold and cynical’_ by the people. While Akiteru was a ‘ _talented and trustworthy_ ’ prince. It showed the second prince in not so positive light and he didn't know if he should believe them, the people always exaggerate or fabricated their stories. 

  


  


But knowing that Prince Kei could take away his job with the snap of a finger, it scares him. Maybe the stories were true. 

  


  


He felt his heartbeat quickened as they approached the castle. He felt as though he was going to faint. Someone opened the door from the outside. As the rest was asked to form a line and enter a specific part of the castle, Oikawa stayed behind to walk with Yamaguchi. Tadashi slightly frowned as the boy ran beside him. Not because he disliked him, but because he felt envious of him, Oikawa had everything that Tadashi wanted. Good looks, charm, and talent. He quickly shook his jealousy aside, with a bitter smile on his face, _he felt pathetic._ He knew comparing yourself to other was bad, yet he still does it. 

  


  


They were escorted by two royal guards to the first floor kitchen and was asked to wait for Akaashi. They met up with the other participants from other towns, seeing how much more competition Tadashi had, added a lot more pressure than ever before. He sat down at a vacant chair, silently bitting his fingernail and bouncing his right leg. He noticed a few other doing basically the same thing. Oikawa, yet again, sat beside him. Tadashi didn't know why or how, but, in the presence of Oikawa he felt a little more at ease. 

  


  


“Tadashi... ” he let out a small sigh, he'd never started an actual conversations with Tadashi before, it was all basically a mash of teasing and light bullying and friendly competitions— it still shockimg to him that they became friends from just that “ _You know that your family will not blame you after this right? ”_

  


  


Tadashi froze, and lowered his head, prying his eyes from the ceiling, to look at Oikawa. He was still facing forward, with his head tilted high, not looking at anything else. He smiled at him. 

  


  


_‘He's right’_

  


  


They heard the loud sounds of someone's footsteps nearby, they looked to the side to see Akaashi Keiji walking towards them, a white apron around his waist and a notebook in his arms, by his side were two people (who Tadashi assumes is his guards) dressed in white and gray shirts. 

  


  


He stopped right before the door of the kitchen to announce, “Once I call your name, please enter the kitchen for the interview.” before going inside without another word. 

  


* * *

  


“Oikawa Tooru” 

  


  


Tadashi took a deep breath, if the sheet that one of the guards showed them earlier was correct, he would going next to Oikawa. 

  


  


Only a few people were left in the waiting room, the ones who were already finished were lead to a different location. 

  


  


As the seconds pass, he feels himself slowly going back to the same anxious mess he was before. He played with the cloth of his dress. He tried to breathe, but the air got stuck in his throat. 

  


  


“Tadashi Yamaguchi”

  


  


He jolted, and tried to stand up. Oikawa opened the door and saw the situation that Tadashi was in. He gave him a small nod, before he was taken away by a young lady to somewhere. Yamaguchi stood up, and slowly walked in, taking slow deep breaths as he does. 

  


  


Akaashi was sitting on a small chair, writing something in his notebook. “Please sit down” he gestured to the empty seat in front of him. 

  


  


Tadashi nodded and silently waited for him to start the interview. 

  


  


“Introduce yourself” he said, eyes staring up at him, watching his movements. Like a predator hunting his prey. 

  


  


* * *

  


  


The interview didn't go as horrible as Tadashi thought. Even though he messed up some of the words and was stuttering, Akaashi understood and let him take some time to prepare himself. He also wasn't as strict as stoic as Tadashi thought. He did managed to make him laugh when he was telling a story of the disaster of a day when he learned to bake— he didn't know if that was a good thing or not. 

  


  


“Why are you here?” Keiji asked as he finished scribbling something in his notebook. 

  


  


_Ah._ He'd practiced this question so many times in his head— he knew that this question was coming, he was prepared for this. 

  


  


“For my family” Tadashi said. Akaashi raised a brow. 

  


  


“My mother needs immediate medicine, but unfortunately the money from our family bakery isn't enough” he explained, truthfully. “Working here will help her. And it will ease the burden on my father as well” 

  


  


He looked down, he remembered yet again the amount of responsibility he held in his shoulders. 

  


  


But, he remembered — _“Have more confidence in your ability!” “You know your family won't blame you, right?”_ — he knew better now. 

  


  


“Well,” Akaashi clicked his pen, pulling Tadashi away from his own mind “That concludes this interview, please wait outside and wait for the announcement”

  


  


“Okay”

  


* * *

  


Coming out of that room, felt like a plucking out a sharp needle from his skin— the pain and uncomfortable feeling was gone. 

  


  


Tadashi saw Oikawa surrounded by girls in the hall where they were supposed to wait. He gave them a small smile and they felt weak in the knees. Yamaguchi chuckled at the absolute power attractive people have over others. He'd keep in mind to thank him for the encouraging speech he gave him earlier; if you could even call that a speech. 

  


  


He was bored out of his mind waiting for the interview to be over so he decided to talk to other people. Yamaguchi was, and always had been, good with talking, his anxiety and nerves would just always prevent him doing so. 

  


  


“Akaashi was so handsome!” a girl with blonde hair whispered to her friend. She was leaning against a pillar, twirling her long hair in her hands. 

  


“Right?” another girl whispered, with a hand against her chest “When he was waking towards us, I though he was a prince!” 

  


  


“Damn, I think I might have some competition” Oikawa laughed from behind Tadashi. 

  


  


  


“Attention please!”

  


  


All their head jerked in the direction the voice came from. It was the same guard that was with Akaashi before. “To all the names that I will mention: _Mayuri, Natsuke, Takara, Oikawa, and Yamaguchi_ , please follow me for the first baking test”

  


  


Tadashi could feel his knees shake, he covered his mouth with his hands in shock. He stepped forward, but not before Oikawa gave him a big pat on his back; almost a slap. It hurts, Oikawa was strong despite his figure, but it made him happy nonetheless. He could feel the tears pool in the corner of his eyes, but, he reminded himself that this was still the second part of the search. It wasn't done yet. 

  


  


They were given their own aprons and was lead back to kitchen. Tadashi's was colored black with orange lines at the side. Tadashi was happily walking next to Oikawa who couldn't stop smiling at his white and cyan apron. 

  


  


“For this test, only two of you will pass” the guard said as he opened the door “And all you need to do is impress the judges”

  


  


Tadashi felt his smile drop, his eyes went wide as he saw who was beside Akaashi. Sitting down with a cold glare towards them, was Prince Kei himself. They now have a table in front of them, and Kei played with the metal spoon in his hands. They locked eyes. His body froze at his gaze. The blonde squinted his eyes behind his glasses, and quickly whispered something to Akaashi's ear. The black haired fellow nodded his head with a smile, and Kei looked back at Tadashi with a subtle smirk. 

  


  


_Fuck_.


	2. Welcome

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Technically a filler, but I needed to establish these things before we focus on the main couple's relationship (-~-)

“ _Wah_ , your library is so much bigger than ours!” 

  
Tsukishima stared at his ‘ _friend_ ’ with shame as he was running and jumping around their library's first floor, making all sorts of wierd noises. Although he couldn't blame him, it's bound to impress anyone with its two stories filled to the brim with books. Shouyou marveled at the the giant statue of a lady with the moon at her fingertips. “Who's that?” he asked. But Kei didn't answer, he was too busy judging him. 

  
The library was dark, with the giant wooden windows as the only light source. This room was a hidden place inside the Tsukishima castle, with only but a few people knowing about it. It was like a safe place that Kei didn't want to share with anyone. He sighed. 

  
“Psst, Hinata, please be quiet” Their tutor, Ennoshita, whispered, shooting him a sharp glance before walking away to light the candles around the room. Kei watched as the burning flame danced around the wax, giving objects that surrounds it a red glow. “Go to our usual table, and study your notes” he ordered with a stern voice. They both mumble a small ‘ _yes sir_ ’ before going to a wooden table in the center of the library. 

  
It was hard to believe—especially for Tsukki—how Hinata Shouyou is a prince. He was wild, energetic, and free, not exactly like how a prince should act. He didn't look like he cared about what the public thought of him, he did what he wanted, he did what he thought was fun. It was wierd. That's not like what Kei's mother told him to do.

  
He could never understand Hinata, never in a million years. The crow kingdom was a strange place for Kei—filled with the strangest people he meet. 

  
“What are you staring at Tsukishima?” he asked. He tilted his head to the side, and squinted his eyes, smiling. “Wanna fight?” 

  
“Stop that, you look like an absolute buffoon” Kei whispered. He placed his leather notebook on the desk and flipped through it, slightly smiling when he would see tiny doodles at the corner of a page; doodles that he drew when he was bored in a lesson. 

  
Shouyou's small lips turned into a frown, he clicked his tongue “Why are you always so... stingy?” he asked, he started to move his pen to draw a tiny angry man, much like the doodles on Kei's notes. He looked up at Tsukki with observant eyes, Kei could see his reflection in them. And he started to draw again.

  
_Ah. He's drawing me._

  
“Why are you always asking so many questions?” He rested his head on his palm. Silently watching the voy as he made his work of art. He found it hilarious how it does not resemble him in any way at all. 

  
“Because I'm curious” he simply stated, as if it was an obvious thing. He slammed his hands into the table—as quietly as he could—and stood up from his chair, and with a high head he pointed at Tsukishima, he proclaimed “The day I'll stop asking questions is the day you start to stop being such a stingyshima!” he smiled to himself at his clever nickname. 

  
_‘You deserve a pat on the back for that one, Sho!’_

  
“I'm not stingy” he mumbled “And I don't look that when I'm angry” he frowned at the look of Hinata's drawing 

  
Ennoshita slapped the backs of their head with a book. “I thought I told you both to review your notes” he sat down with them “And especially you Prince Shouyou, your grades have been making very slow progress” he pointed a finger at him. 

  
The shrimp pouted, and then he bumped his head into the table repeatedly, with the tufts of his orange hair lightly bouncing up and down. He whined. “But it's not that fun!” 

  
Ennoshita sighed, he wondered what ever did he do to deserve this. Kei chuckled at their poor tutor suffering. The black haired boy said “Shouyou, if we can finish this early, I'll let you play ball with your ‘ _friends_ ’ for the rest of the day” he furrowed his eyebrows in concern as he remembered that his friends were peasants and workers, who can easily take advantage of him and his quite stupid nature—or so they thought. 

  
Hinata practically jumped from his seat with a wide smile. “Really? You'd do that?” 

  
“So long as you finish these activities and these books” Chikara said “Although, if you are planning on hanging out with those people, I might have to task a guard to watch over you” 

  
He and the other royal advisors were already planning on increasing security for the next couple of weeks, with all these new people into castle for the search, there's no guarantee that the royal family will be safe. It was the most troubling part of the search, and Shouyou bringing it up caused a small wave of panic course through Ennoshita's body. 

  
“What?” he yelled. His smile disappeared from his face, replacing it was a small look of disbelief. “But, I'm not a child anymore” Hinata balled his fist onto the table. “I've learned to protect myself”

  
“Prince Shouyou, you are still—very much—a child” Ennoshita argued, he gestured to the outside world “And you are a prince, there are people out there much stronger than you are—they can hurt you, you need someone to be there to be able to help you” he let out a short breath “Do you understand?”

  
He lowered his head. “But still...” 

  
Ennoshita placed two new worksheets each in front of them; one cover was blue and the other was a dark red. “I'll be talking with both of your personal guards, and informing them that the two prince's are planning to be going outdoors” he stood up and left without another breath. Ever since the start of his morning, he had a bad, bad feeling about today. He needed to add extra security to calm his insides. 

  
As soon as the door was locked shut, Kei let out a small chuckle, he leaned further into his own chair, with his hands massaging his temples “I understand where they're coming from” he sighed “but isn't this a little too much?” he whispered to himself. Having a more eyes that will follow him around, watching his every movement , sends a cold shiver though his spine. 

  
He looked at the small prince in front of him, his energetic, and loud self was gone. He was hoping to distract himself by listening to Hinata's rambling. But he sat down in his chair with lips pressed together in a small line and was sitting in a straight line. He didn't know if that had been a particular good thing or not “What's going on with you? Why so stiff?” 

  
He shook his head to the side “No, its nothing” his face had a tad tint of pink. Wierd. He was acting more and more strange today. 

  
Kei brushed it off to side and started with his work. It was merely all a recap of the things that they had done last week. So he was sure he'd finish it in no time. After a few minutes alone with Hinata in the library, Kei felt like ripping all his hair off—Hinata drumming the table with his pen was more annoying than his voice. _He was trying to concentrate for God's sake._

  
Ennoshita had come back with their personal guards by his side. “Today were adding in security, and for the rest of the day, your guards will be by your side more than normal”

  
Kei scoffed “Ennoshita, what is going on?”

  
“I am so sorry Prince Kei, Prince Shouyou” he rubbed the lid of his eyes “I just have a horrible feeling in my stomach about today, so I personally requested this,” he gestured at the guards behind him, “Please finish your work, and then-”

  
“I'm done” Hinata interrupted. He handed his completed work to Ennoshita who stared at him in shock. Even Kei was surprised. Hinata had never finished his work before he does, especially in that very short period of time. He hurriedly finishes up his work, he was never the one who had to catch up to Hinata, it was not a bad change—to say the least. 

  
“Here, I'm done too” he handed his worksheet to Ennoshita. 

  
“Well, that concludes today's small quiz” he said “You are free do to as you wish”. He bowed his head to the princes and left the room, leaving the four of them alone inside. 

  
Tsukkishima let out a cough “Your um...” Kei started, he gestured his hand in a circling motion to his guard “Your name is?”

  
“Kageyama, sir” he held his hand to chest and gave a light bow “Kageyama Tobio”

  
“Ah, of course” Kei clicked his tongue, and gave himself a small slap in the head “I'm sorry about that, let's go” he stood up

  
“Wait-” Shouyou yelled, with a voice so loud it startled everyone around him “Where are you going?” he asked

  
“Why should I tell you?” he smirked at tiny prince

  
He stretched his hand to grab his notebook, but as soon as he lifted it, Hinata's hand swiftly latched onto Kei's wrist. He had a tough grip on it, not enough to bruise but enough to keep his hands in place, Kageyama took a defensive position behind Kei. Hinata had a eerie look on his face, his eyes were wide and creepy—almost bird like—and his lips were in a small smile. 

  
“Can I come with?”

  
Kei let out an amused smile “Sure”

  
Hinata came with a lot of surprises today. 

* * *

If Kei was honest, he didn't expect Hinata to be so good at fencing—he was so focused and concentrated—it was so different from what he usually was like. It was almost as if someone else took control of his body. His movement was a bit of a show-off though. _Was he trying to impress someone? Was it Tanaka?_ Kei didn't know, he couldn't understand him. 

  
But one thing Kei could understand clearly, was that Hinata and Kageyama was acting off. Both were acting so put of their usual character. Hinata had practically begged Kageyama to teach him fencing, leaving the poor soul no choice but to agree.   


They were also acting as if they were close friends, both always in a close proximity with each other.  


_We're they friends? But they can't be._ That's not normal—for a prince to be that close to his servant. Not only was it wierd, it was looked down upon.

  
And another thing that was so strange to Kei—when Kageyama volunteered to refill their water bottles during their break, Hinata insisted to go and help him saying things like; “He wantred to ease the burden on the poor boy” and then they returned 5 minutes late. 

  
It was like they knew something that Kei didn't. It was like they were hiding it from him. And Kei didn't like that, he hated it, and he was determined to find out whatever it is. But that isn't Tsuki's main concern right now, he needed to ask something that had been bugging his mind. 

  
“Tanaka-san, where is Miss Saeko?” Kei asked. Giving the bottle of water he finished drinking to Kageyama. He didn't see her all practice today, “Is she sick?”

  
“Oh yeah, she is the one who teaches Prince Aki!” Hinata yelled, he took of his mask and rubbed his beads of sweat off with a soft towel. “Where is she?” Shouyou asked again. 

  
Tsukishima could see Tanaka flinch. He whispered “Don't you know what happened?” he wanted to pull them over in a quiet corner—but that was quite dangerous right now—he looked around for a sign that anyone is watching them, when he saw that the coast was clear he gestured for them to follow him. He tried to act like normal and not be suspicious. 

  
_“Look, you must promise me to never tell anyone about this, okay?”_

* * *

“Ah, there you are, Kei, perfect timing” Akaashi gave him a soft smile, as the prince slowly opened the door to the kitchen. “Please take a seat”

The few servants around the room started to place ingredients on a table for the contestants to use, Kageyama offered to help but with no avail, he had no choice but to do the same as always and stand in the background and watch. He gave off a slight pout, he stood behind Kei and tried to look less intimidating as to not scare everyone.

  
Kei ran his hands through his soft hair, it was still drenched in sweat from practice, he cringed his face in disgust. “Akaashi, Why is me being here necessary?” he plopped himself into the chair, and sighed, his body and brain were already so tired. He thought this day would be more calm, but, with Hinata being there it drained the last ever remaining ounce of his energy. 

  
“Well, Prince Kei, do you remember what else Kageyama told you last night?”

  
“Yeah, I remember” he sighed “Who did you pick?”

“It's not fully decided yet, so you can to help me after we judge all the contestants”

  
Kei let out a bitter laugh, he can't believe that Akaashi would drag him into this last minute decision. “So, What exactly do I have to do as the judge?” 

  
Akaashi scoffed. He ran his fingers through his hair and leaned back onto the chair “They'll give you their respective dishes and you judge them, it's self explanatory Prince Kei, use your brain”

  
Tsukkishima rolled his eyes, he heard distance footsteps from outside. “Is that them?” he asked, toying around with a metal spoon he found on the table, tracing over the engravings on top. 

  
The door opened, making a small creak, and the five contestants walked in. He silently enjoyed watching as the light was sucked out of their faces. He whispered to Akaashi “Did you not tell them I was going to be here?”

  
He let a small ‘ _oh_ ’ before, pulling his lips in a straight line before slowly nodding his head, he can't believe he forgot that. _‘Goddammit Akaashi_ ’ he whispered to himself.

* * *

“Congratulations, Tadashi”

  
Yamaguchi's knees were starting to become more wobbly, and he could hear the loud, rapid thuds of his heart—it was like it wanted to jump off of Tadashi's chest. With a stumble he reached onto Oikawa's arm for support. He laughed, and held Yamaguchi's back “You okay?” he asked. 

  
“I think so” he noticed his voice was quivering and shaking, he didn't actually expect to succeed. He felt like tears build up from the corners of his eyes so buried his head into his friend's shoulder as an attempt to stop it. 

  
Prince Kei was still sitting in the exact same chair as before, his legs were crossed as he inspected at his fingernails, to avoid looking at the sight in front of him. He scoffed, he feel his eyes rolling to the back of his head. They were making such big deal put of something that doesn't have importance. It was _pathetic_. 

  
Akaashi handed to both Tadashi and Tooru their own official aprons as well as a sheet of paper, confirming they've passed. “Congratulations to both of you” he couldn't help but smile at them. He could remember what it was like going through this, he could remember the happiness he felt in this similar moment. 

  
“You can find the head chef in the main kitchen, just give him the certificate and he'll know what to do” he said to them. “He'll be the one showing you to your rooms” 

  
“Um” Yamaguchi stuttered “Where is the main kitchen?”

  
“Hmm—Yachi! Can you spare a minute?” Akaashi called 

  
Out comes a small blonde girl, wearing a bright green uniform. She placed the crate of fresh ingredients on the table and carefully walked over to where the other three were. She took of her gloves and placed them in her back pocket, and brushed off the remaining dirt off her clothes. 

  
“Um, what is it that you need, Akaashi-san?” she asked, her voice was tight and wobbly as if she was scared or nervous about something. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other. 

  
‘ _She looks cute_ ’ Tadashi thought to himself. 

  
“I'm sorry to disturb you, Yachi” Akaashi bowed his head to her as an apology “But could you show these gentlemen the way to the main kitchen? Well—if you don't mind”

  
She relaxed her shoulder, and gave them a toothy grin “Oh, I'd love to” she bounced lightly on her feet, with her short hair bouncing with her “Why—I was already headed to main kitchen anyways”

  
“Come on and follow me” she walked ahead of them, and was already at the door. “There's a shortcut hidden in the garden” she lifted a finger to her lips “Let's keep that a secret between the three of us, 'kay?”

  
Tadashi giggled. “Alright then—show us the way, Yachi”

  
“So, I never got any of your names”

  
“Oh, my name is Oikawa Tooru and this is Yamaguchi Tadashi” He said “Pleasure to meet you”

  
“Wait—I've heard about you guys before!” she gasped, holding her hand against her lips “I remember Kageyama talking about it”

  
“What? Who–who's Kageyama?” Tadashi asked. 

  
“Kageyama, the guard of prince Kei, told me that Akaashi recognized your name as your bakeries were quite popular” she explained. “But enough of that—let's move on, and let me introduce myself properly” she cleared her throat “As you already know, I am Yachi Hitoka, I am a gardener here at the Tsukishima castle—pleasure to meet you”

* * *

“Alright, we're here~” 

  
Tadashi marveled at the beautiful place. “It's so colorful in here”. Oikawa gave a small hum of agreement. 

  
Yachi went over to a nearby fountain, and dipped her hands, grabbing as little water as she could before using it to clean the dirt off herself. 

  
“Come and follow me” Yachi whispered, she pointed “It's through this bush” and grabbed on their wrist and pulled them into the itchy bush. And they were met with a brick wall. 

  
_“Oh god—I think I felt something crawl up my leg”_ Oikawa whispered as soon as they got out. He leaned over to investigate, fortunately enough it was just a small group of ants. “Get off me” he whispered as they brushed them off. 

  
“You guys okay?” Yachi asked, opening up a window. They both nodded. The familiar smell of baked bread suddenly came about as she succeeded in opening it. “We're here” she pushed herself up and jumped inside the window. 

  
“Yachi—wait!” Tadashi yelled. Gripping into the apron and the paper making sure not to lose it. 

  
“Yeah?” her small head popped up, barely into view. “Come on in”

  
“You sure it's okay?” Oikawa asked

  
“Yeah, they use this as their shortcut, so they don't have to go around the palace to get to the garden” she explained. 

  
“Yachi, what's going on over here?” a gentle voice asked. Another person came up behind her, a man wearing a black chef's hat. 

  
“Ah, Sugawara-san” Yachi exclaimed. She gave off a little bow and gestured at the two outside. “Akaashi said to lead them to the main kitchen, but I didn't want to waste their time, so I showed them the shortcut”

  
“But wouldn't you be able to let them familiarize themselves here if you showed them around the castle?” Sugawara asked. 

  
She jolted in realization, “Ah, well I—um” she stuttered “Yes, but—I'm sorry, senpai”

  
“Hey, it's okay” he reassured her, chuckling he focused his attention onto Oikawa and Yamaguchi. “Are you two from the search? Is it already finished?”

  
“Oh, we don't know when the search is going to be finished but” Oikawa walked forward to show his the said certificate “Akaashi wanted us to give this to the head chef”

  
Sugawara chuckled “Well then—you're in luck, the head chef so happens to be me.” He said. “Come on inside, what the heck are you two still doing out there?”

  
Tadashi careuly pushed himself up to enter through the window while Oikawa effortlessly jumped inside, landing with a small thud. Yachi whispered something along the lines of ‘I'll be off now!’ while carrying something on a silver plate. 

  
Sugawara waved his hands at the young girl. Then he twirled around to face them, the apron around his body spinning as a dress would, he held up his palms towards the two of them, silently waiting for them to do something. He waited. 

  
Oikawa hesitantly gave him the papers. Sugawara nodded—holding back a small chuckle—he leaned against a countertop. “Well, I wonder what took so long,” he scanned through the pice of yellow paper and finally gestured for Tadashi to give him his. 

  
After a long time of silence, Sugawara jumped from the where he sat “Alright, pleased to meet both of you” he gave them a small pat on the shoulders “You'll start tommorow morning; I'll assign someone to show both of you the basics and rules that we follow along here-” he coughed “-and then regarding your help with the preparations for the first prince's wedding...I'll have to give it more thought. I'll probably tell you after I meet the rest of the newcomers”

  
“Got all that?” he asked, they replied with a small nod of their heads. Sugawara clapped “Kenma! Asahi!” 

  
“What is it that you need, Suga?” a tall bearded man appeared with his hair tied around a messy bun. And behind him was a blonde haired boy, with the roots of his hair dyed black. He appeared timid and shy, they both were. 

  
“Um—Asahi please show Oikawa to the extra room on the second floor” he had his palm pressed firmly against Tooru's back, slowly pushing him towards the scary man. Sugawara sensed his rather tense motions, “Don't worry, don't be scared of Asahi—he's a nice man.” he reassured him. “He won't kill you” he whispered. 

  
“Oh—I'm not scared.” Oikawa said. 

  
“And Kenma, sweetie, go show Yamaguchi to room 12 on the third floor”

  
“Sure...” Kenma's voice was small and quiet, and his posture was very hunched back. He jerked his head to the direction they were headed, gesturing for Tadashi to follow him. 

  
Yamaguchi passed by Tooru having a small conversation with Asahi “See you soon Oikawa-san”

* * *

“Now—forgive me if we get a little lost, I'm not the most familiar with this place” he whispered. Playing with the loose ends of his shirt. They walked through a busy hallway filled with so many servants. “I believe this where one of the waiting room for the search is” he mumbled, swiftly avoiding close contact with other people. 

  
“It should be here” he pointed at a corner. “Yeah—I can see it” he walked over to room twelve, with Tadashi slowly following behind. 

  
“So uh, you will have a roommate soon. They should arrive around noon” he gave Yamaguchi a small silver key. “Regarding your uniform, you will be off to see the tailor later on after your roommate arrives. You already have your nightgowns inside,” he pointed towards his left, “and over there is the bathroom” he clicked his tounge “Um... See you tomorrow at work—I guess” he awkwardly waved a small goodbye to him. 

  
“Yeah, thank you for showing me around, Kenma-san” Tadashi smiled at him. 

  
“The pleasure is all mine”

  
As the boy vanished in sight Tadashi opened the door to his room. He was in awe. It was so spacious and warm, so different from the life that he was used to. It had a bunk bed with white sheets and soft pillows, a wooden closet, a desk, and a giant window decorated with curtains in a light shade of blue. The view was incredible from up in the mountains—he could see above the fluffy clouds and could feel the cold air dance around his body. It was a life that he wouldn't mind having—although as he looked around the room, something was missing; a puzzle piece that could've completed the whole picture. _What was it?_

  
He laughed as he knew, deep down in himself, he knew what he wanted. He knew what he missed. Tadashi wrapped his arms around himself; he missed the warmth of his family, he missed them so much—it hadn't even been a full day, yet he already wanted to run back home. He'd have to adapt to a lot of new things while living here.

  
He walked up towards the big closet near the beds. Kenma mentioned that there were going to be nightgowns in there, and he wanted to make sure to find at least one that fits his body properly. He found around four or so nightgowns inside, two of which were colored blue and rest was white. He could see a color palate used on the furnitures and architecturearound the room—and around the castle, now that he's thought of it. He stretched his arms over for the nearest one he could grab. He stroked his fingers up-and-down the gown, feeling the type of fabric that they had used—although he wouldn't be able to identify what type it was, he just wanted to do it for the sole reason that it looked so soft. He felt its nice and smooth texture underneath his fingers, pressing against all the bumps that the engravings has left. 

  
He set it on top of his chest, pressing it firmly against his clothes, and looked down to see where the clothes would end. He saw that it should probably be just a little bit above the knee. It wasn't that bad, although he still wanted to see if the others would fit him as well. He wouldn't be able to choose his own set of clothings or which bed to sleep in right now—remembering that he had a roommate set to arrive latter today, he'd have to talk with them about it first. But his tiredness had gotten the best of him. 

  
_‘Just a few minutes’_ he said to himself

  
He layed down on the bottom bed. He sighed as he felt himself become surrounded by the soft mattress, he snuggled his head into the pillow. Oh this felt like floating around in heaven. It was so different from the block of hay he used to sleep on.

  
His lips formed into a small satisfied smile, but quickly turned into a frown. He figured that, if he ever thinks about anything that even remotely relates to his home, he would think of his family; how they're still living life in the dumps, while here, Tadashi was enjoying himself too much—he isn't even doing his job—he gave himself no right to feel comfortable at this place while his family was suffering. He had a purpose of why he is here. He can't get off track. 

  
He sat up. Straightening his back, and stretching out his arms and legs. 

  
Three small delicate knocks were heard from outside his door. He flinched. Tadashi stood up and straightened the sheets of the bed; making sure to delete all evidence that he was ever there, he took slow, hesitant steps towards the door. He could hear muffled voices from outside—could he recognize them? No, he tried. “Could that be my roommate?” he whispered to the empty room. 

  
“Hello!” came a loud yet familiar voice. 

  
Yamaguchi swiftly flinched as the door suddenly boomed open when he was debating opening it. He smiled as he saw that tuft of blonde hair. Tadashi let out a small sarcastic chuckle “Well—hello to you too, Nishinoya-senpai”

  
“Oh my- Tadashi! You're here—You did it!” he ran up to Yamaguchi with all the energy had and jumped on him; wrapping his arms and legs around the boys torso, successfully giving him the celebratory hug. 

  
They heard a loud cough from outside “Boys, please follow me. We are to be going to the tailor for your uniforms” A tall man with short black hair said, his back leaned against the wooden frame of the door. 

  
“We'll be right behind you, Daichi-san” Nishinoya yelled. 

  
“Well, pick up the pace then-” he sighed, a tiny lock of hair dropping from his forehead “-You two aren't the only ones that need uniforms”

  
Nishinoya grabbed Tadashi by the wrist and quickly pulled him to follow along with the tall man. They stopped for a small moment to lock the door. Nishinoya bouncing on his feet while Tadashi tested the lock just to be sure. 

  
“Tadshi—oh, let me tell you about this dude I met, he's such a cool guy” Nishinoya said. They walked by each other's side, slightly behind the scary guy that Nishinoya was with before. “His name is Tanaka” Nishinoya explained, walking upfront Tadashi, making exaggerated move and expressions as he does—much like how he usually tells his stories. “I think he teaches fencing here”

  
They reached a narrow hall way that lead to a door straight ahead and two doors on the sides. The last light of the sunset peeked through the giant windows, painting the palace in a pretty and warm color. They passed through tens of the palace maids and butlers, who all seems to be in a bit of a hurry. The lack of staff members during the preparation for the wedding must a big burden on the ones who survived prince Kei's outburst. He felt sorry for them. 

  
It made Tadashi wonder, he lifted his head to the beautiful beige ceiling, ‘Did the prince got away with this situation with no punishment? How would they punish royalty?’ he shook his head, he was asking unimportant questions again. 

  
“Nishinoya, is prince Kei always so quiet?” Tadashi asked

  
“Hm? What is it that you mean?” 

  
“It's nothing—just, during the test he was- never mind”

  
“Okay-” Daichi interrupted “-I've got to grab the rest of the newcomers” Daichi said, turning around to face the two. He pointed his hands towards a white door located in the far end of a hallway. “Over there is where you boys can meet Shimizu—she'll take of everything after you say your respective jobs”

“Thank you Daichi-San!” Nishinoya jumped in the air while waving his arms at him as a gesture of a farewell. 

  
“Who is he anyway?” Tadashi asked

  
“Oh, he is an sort of...The main blacksmith and silversmith in the castle” he said “Sort of like our leader”

  
“Well—he looks a bit scary to me”

  
“They told that he was usually nice to people, except when he was angry—or stressed” Nishinoya whispered “They warned me bot to get on his bad side” 

  
Yamaguchi giggled, “Well, good luck with that”

\---

  
Nishinoya gave three all to familiar knocks on the door. And a raven haired beauty opened it. Nishinoya froze on his spot, watching as her soft locks of hair carefully flow in the wind and her eyes would tinkle in the reflection in the last daylight. She was breathtaking.

  
“Hello is there anything I could help you wi-” she said, her voice was so sweet and silvery, Nishinoya fell in love with it. But alas she was interrupted by another voice in background. 

  
“Wah—Yamaguchi!” a blonde haired girl called out. 

  
“Yachi! I- I didn't think I'd find you here” Yamaguchi let out a light chuckle. 

  
“Oh—well um,” she stuttered, twirling a curl of her hair in her finger, “I usually hang out here, and help with the pretty dresses and...stuff” she averted her eyes, and was quick to change on the subject matter “Anyways are you two here for your uniforms?”

  
Both nodded, and Shimizu let out a happy yelp, she jumped on her toes and was quick to grab her needed materials. “Oh perfect timing, I was just getting bored”

  
Yachi furrowed her brows and hunched over herself. _Was she boring to Kiyoko? Is Kiyoko only letting her here cause she's trying to be nice? Oh, God_. She felt a small tap on her shoulder-

  
“At least I have Yachi over here to talk to” she squized the young girls shoulder. After knowing her for quite some time, she had picked up her mannerisms when she's nervous. 

  
“My name is Kiyoko Shimizu, anyways let's get this started—shall we?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't include the events of the cooking contest cause I am saving that for the next chapter.
> 
> Also, thank you so very much for the support you guys have given in this story so far. Everything means a whole lot to me, and, it's one of the main reasons I keep on writing. So, from the bottom of my heart, Thank you💞


	3. A Forbidden Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A companion for chapter two.

_“Tanaka-san, where is Miss Saeko?” Kei asked. Running his fingers through his sweaty hair and giving the bottle of water he finished drinking to Kageyama. He didn't see her all practice today, “Is she sick?”_

_“Oh yeah, she is the one who teaches Prince Aki!” Hinata yelled, he took of his mask and rubbed his beads of sweat off with a soft towel. “Where is she?” Shouyou asked again._

_Tsukishima could see Tanaka flinch. He stayed silent, slowly hunching over himself. He whispered, staying cautious of his voice “Didn't they tell you what happened?” both prince shook their heads—confused but intrigued._

_Tanaka had a sudden urge to do something. The locked up secrets hidden they buried deep in his chest wanted to be set free, but he couldn't say it. Not now, at least. He wanted to pull them over in a quiet corner, where no one could see them—but that was quite suspicious and dangerous right now—he looked around for a sign that anyone is watching them, a sign that they had his eyes set on him. When he saw that the coast was clear, he gestured for them to follow him._

_“Look, you must promise me to never tell anyone about this, okay?”_

* * *

“W-what?” Hinata asked, his muscles became tense as he took silent steps backwards in shock. His knees became weak and wobbly as the ground was dancing under his stumble. The image in his mind wouldn't leave, _why had they done such a thing?_

Kei clapped a hand over his mouth, his skin began turning a pale white, “She's still alive right?” he asked, grasping the fabrics of his uniform. 

“Yes—Yes, she's still alive” Tanaka sighed, he averted his eyes away from theirs, “Good thing the queen took mercy on her” his voice had suddenly became wobbly. 

“But... She was almost executed cause of that?” Hinata asked. “It was just a-”

A burst of adrenaline pumped through Ryu's veins “Prince Hinata-” he raised his voice “-Let's just... move on from this, okay?” he pleaded, “You asked me what happened to her and I answered it, the important thing is: she's fine” He took steps backwards, trying to run away. He shouldn't have told them. 

“But it's not fair...” Hinata whispered. “Prince Aki and Miss Saeko love each other right?” he balled his fist “Everyone should be able to love who they want! Who cares if it's a prince and a servant?” he yelled

“Shouyou—” Kei sighed, but was interrupted midsentence. 

“Prince Hinata, Akiteru is about to be married”he whispered “And royalties are to be wedded for alliances” Tanaka explained “You should know that those types of relationships aren't allowed, ” he became silent, staring at the small prince. His eyes went wide _“Prince Hinata, are you perhaps hiding something from everyone?”_

“No—no, I'm not” he shook his head. “I-It's just that, what my mother told me is...different” he frowned “They told me it was allowed to love who you desired”

“Thats because your from the Crow Kingdom” Kei answered “A kingdom of wildness and freedom” “Things are different here” he laughed “Its more... **strict** ”

They heard cough from nearby. 

"I'm so, so sorry to interrupt, but sir Akaashi had requested your presence early prince Kei” Kagayama whispered, he hid against the other side of the building to keep them away his sight, he'd be afraid that it would be a breach of privacy. 

Kei placed his hands on his hips as he let out a sigh “Yes of course, I'll be right over there”

He wasn't bothered by a fact that he'd already known for years. But it was still relieving to know that Saeko was okay, even though she was just as much of an annoyance as her brother, Kei still appreciated her presence. He was more bothered by the fact his brother his this from him. He twisted his lips into a small frown. He knew that Akiteru and his fiancé didn't love each other, but still—cheating on her before their marriage. That's still wrong. 

Kageyama slowly started to approach prince Kei, wondering what had taken the mind of the tall prince “Is something the matter, Sir?” he asked. He kept a reasonable distance between them, knowing the the prince didn't like physical contact that much. 

Hinata stood by the other prince's side and watched as Kei let out a long continuous line of _sighs._ The only time he ever saw him act this troubled, is whenever Ennoshita gave them a super hard question on their test. He felt himself back away as the guard came closer to the blond prince. He could feel his stomach twist and turn with his cheeks burning with a fiery passion. He wrapped his small arms around himself, the loose uniform started to dangle from his wrist. 

‘Those types of relationships aren't allowed’ he remembers. 

But that wasn't what they said. They said that he was allowed to love who he wanted. His mind became a blur, he didn't know what was wrong with liking him. Was it because he was a guy? Was it because he was a guard? Or was it because it was both? He didn't know. 

“-Hinata, are you okay?”

He froze in his spot as he felt his warm hand tap his shoulder, amymore contact than that and Hinata would've had exploded “Ye—ah, I'm doing okay. Just spacing out” he chuckled. He looked up at Kageyamas stern face, and slowly took his hands away from his shoulders. Away from himself. He tried so hard to stay close to him today, he wanted to spend as much time as possible with Kageyama. He loved him. 

‘That type of relationship isn't allowed’ 

‘Stop it’

His consciousness yelled at him, they yelled at him to stop before he could get in big trouble. So he ran. He ran away. He didn't know where he was headed, he just didn't want to face him. Ever again. 

‘Stop it before someone gets hurt’

——

“Goodmorin' big sis” Tanaka smiled “How's mom and dad doing?”

He sat down on the dirty floor, with the bouquet of flowers hidden behind him. He stayed in comfort of silence. Letting the warm honeydew sunlight peeking through the windows shine on his face, as he let his mind think, and left his mind to wonder “Sis' I—” his heard his voice broke down, never had he seen himself this broken before “—I'm sorry, I don't know why I told them”

He felt the tears slowly drip from his eyes, his vision becomimg a blur of messy colors, who collided together making a big blob, he wiped it off with the sleeves of his shirt. “I...came here to visit again, and to... also give you these” he sat up and dusted the dirt off his bottom, he grabbed the bouquet from behind him. 

“Here you go,” he laughed, the tears started to fall again, but, this time he didn't do anything to stop it. It was okay for him to cry sometimes “I didn't know what kind of flowers you liked” he sheepishly rubbed his neck “so I just asked for everything that's red—cause I remember you saying it's your favorite color”

He felt his throat become dry. He couldn't breathe, he couldn't stop the tears, he couldn't let himself see his sister like this. He thought he was over it, but that couldn't be further away from the truth. He laughed. 

He gently placed the flowers on the top of her grave, the place where he'd buried her body. He leaned his forehead against the makeshift tombstone. 

“Say ‘hello’ to mom and dad for me” he whispered, “I'll see you soon, Saeko”

He couldn't bring himself to tell them. 

He shouldn't have. 

He already said enough. 

They didn't need to know the truth yet. 

Because remembered—they're too young too know. 

——

A forbidden love between royalty and a peasant—oh Kei couldn't count how many books he's seen about that, books that romanticize a thing that he knew could lead to great trouble. But, in the stories, they had their happily ever after. He couldn't understand how a prince could fall for such a lowlife. A prince should be smart enough to know the consequences of his actions. Akiteru didn't deserve to feel sad, Kei thought, he brought this to himself. Someone could get hurt.

Kei had never loved someone before, so he read about it—he read stories about falling in love with a princess, with a peasant lady, with a maid—he still couldn't understand. 

But Kei shouldn't think too much of it right now, should he?

After all, he'll never fall in love with anybody. At least that was what he promised himself. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy, this story is a disaster
> 
> Mkay, I promise we'll focus on tsukkiyama next chapter. I know it's been 11k words and they still haven't talked, but please be more patient, I'll give you guys the good shit later on😉


	4. Hiatus Notice

I'm so sorry, but this story is on hiatus until the 24th of July

Some problems are stirring up at home, and I'm suffering from extreme writers block. I just feel horrible in general. I'll come back soon, hope you guys understand


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